


Sunset

by Elise_Davidson



Series: 40 Snapshots [25]
Category: Star Trek: Enterprise
Genre: 26. Sunset, 40 Snapshots, Archer thinks it's cute, M/M, More climbing and hiking, Sequel to Sunrise, Shran is definitely tired of Terran courtship rituals, Shran thinks his clothes expose too much skin, but they kiss
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-28
Updated: 2017-03-28
Packaged: 2018-10-12 01:23:47
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,208
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10478913
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Elise_Davidson/pseuds/Elise_Davidson
Summary: Archer takes Shran hiking and climbing in the Blue Ridge Mountains.  It rains.  Shran hates his clothes.





	

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [Sunrise](https://archiveofourown.org/works/10478880) by [Elise_Davidson](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Elise_Davidson/pseuds/Elise_Davidson). 



> Author’s Note: This is a direct follow-up to the prompt Sunrise. I highly recommend you read that one first before this one.
> 
> Hope you enjoy! The link to the "Sunrise" is provided.

Shran looked acutely uncomfortable in the clothing Archer had provided.  It exposed far more skin than he was used to, being that Andorian ships were kept a fair bit colder than Terran ones.  He wore a loose tank top and mesh shorts, his blue skin keenly different from the pink-skinned people Archer had navigated through before they arrived at the base of the hiking trail.

“Your people must hike before they can climb?” Shran asked suspiciously, wishing his eyes would adjust to the different light of the sun here.  “And why do they bare so much skin?  On Andoria, this would be uncivilized.”

“You’re not on Andoria,” Archer responded neutrally.  “You’re on Earth.  The environment is different.  And though it feels…a bit warm now, it will be much warmer before we get to the climb itself.  And while there are climbs that are easier to get to, I believe this one will be worth your time.”

Shran huffed irritably, but resolutely pulled his pack onto his shoulder, the material of the straps already chafing against skin he didn’t normally show.  He ambled behind Archer onto the leafy green entrance of the trail, noting that while the trail was definitely well-tread, there didn’t seem to be many other hikers among them.

“So, this is a rite of passage among your people, pinkskin?” Shran asked, ignoring the way the sky had gone overcast and gray, a light rain coating them both in a damp sheen of moisture.

“Not necessarily.  It depends on the family group, I suppose, or the relationsip.  It’s more of a bonding exercise than anything else,” Archer responded evenly.  “You showed me something beautiful on your planet; I thought I would return the favor.”

“And we couldn’t simply transport to where we’re going?”

Archer shot him a crooked smile, making Shran’s stomach twist in a familiar way that he had grown accustomed to around the Terran captain.  “Where’s the fun?  We could’ve transported to the top of that ice cliff, but you insisted we make the climb.  Why?”

Shran rolled his eyes.  “I told you, pinkskin; it’s a rite of passage among Andorian children.”

The slanted smirk didn’t leave Archer’s face.  “This is a rite of passage on my planet, especially if courting’s involved.”

Shran tripped slightly, kicking dirt up behind his heel and feeling it land unceremoniously on the back of his knee.  “Courting, you say.”

Archer shrugged.  “You expressed an interest.  I am currently not seeing anyone, or being _courted_ , if that’s what you would prefer to hear.  Either way, this is required as part of my ritual.”

A white eyebrow arched high.  “ _Your_ ritual?  Your courtship practices and mating rituals are individualized?”

With a dry chuckle, Archer kept moving.  “The courting, yes.  Mating is pretty much the same no matter who you decide to be with.”

“Interesting.”

XXXXX

The rain never got past a drizzle as they studiously hiked up the trail before they reached a flat, granite rock face.

Archer looked up, wiping the rain from his face as he began pulling out climbing gear.  “Think you can handle it, Shran?”

Shran only gave him a withering stare as he began pulling gear from his pack as well.  “If you’re going to indulge this farce of what you think to be Terran courtship, then you should at least call me by my given name.”

Archer frowned at him as he checked his harness and hooks.  “Shran is your last name?”

“My surname,” Shran corrected, even though it made Archer wonder if something was malfunctioning with his translator.  “My given name is Thy’lek.”

Archer nodded in comprehension.  “Jonathan.”

Shran nodded as well, and they began to climb.  The chalk chafed harshly on his palms, but he had to admit, it helped, given the hindrance of the drizzle that still hadn’t let up.  It left a caked sort of layer on his blue skin, and though he had long forgotten his attire, he still felt self-conscious.

It took nearly as long to scale the rock face as it had the ice cliff.  The sky was dangerously dim by the time they got to the top.  It was a long, flat surface, and Shran could see other campers already set up for the evening far off in the distance.  As they rested and rehydrated, the stormy haze of atmosphere seemed to part for a moment, the brilliant yellow of the Terran sun peeking from behind the clouds and creating silver linings around the edges.

Shran viewed it through alien eyes, the once bothersome yellow light now tempered by dark clouds streaked through with pink and orange.  Lightning flashed off in the distance of the other mountain ranges, of which were plentifully visible now that they were at the top.

Archer pointed vaguely off in the distance.  “You can see Brown Mountain from here.  Some of Grandfather Mountain as well.”

“And the mountain we’re on?” Shran asked as the sun dipped lower.  He could see sheets of rain painting the lower half of the horizon in dark planes of gray.

“Table Rock.  We’ll hike down the slanted edge tomorrow,” Archer responded.  “For now though, we set up camp.”

Shran eyed the numerous campers now gathering on the plateau of the mountain.  “Why wait for tomorrow?  Why not hike down tonight?”

Archer chuckled.  “Because it’s raining and it’s dark.  The weather isn’t good for it.”

Shran’s eyes glittered, the lightning illuminating their color in a dangerous flash of blue.  “And you’d let that stop you?”

Archer seemed to consider his answer for a moment.  “So, you don’t want to spend a night in a tent with me?”

Rolling his eyes, Shran nudged his shoulder against Archer’s.  “We Andorians are a fair bit more…direct, than Terrans are.”

“How much more direct should I be, _Thy’lek_?” Archer asked, deliberately using Shran’s given name.

Shran looked at him warily.  “Must I show you the proper way of things _every time_ , pinkskin?”

Before Archer could respond, Shran had pulled him close and pushed their lips together.  Archer immediately felt a spark race down his spine, pooling low in his groin as cool hands threaded into his hair.  His hands came up to grasp Shran’s biceps, fingers ticking over the cords of muscle, grunting when they flexed beneath his skin.

It was over more quickly than Archer would have liked, Shran’s icy lips still near his own.

“That direct, pinkskin.”

Archer laughed weakly, struggling to ignore how good Shran’s chilled skin felt beneath his hands.  “You can call me Jon, you know.  Or Jonathan; take your pick.”

Shran snorted, swiping a quick kiss over Archer’s lips again as he curled around the Terran.  “Pitch the ten, _Jon_.”

Archer kissed him quickly before leading him across the flat plain of mountain.  “Like you said, why not go ahead and hike down tonight?”

“You said it was dangerous.”

“And I think you can handle it.  If we have to, we’ll make camp if we have to.”  Archer held out his hand.  “Are you with me?”

Shran looked at the pink, wrinkled skin before he slid his pale blue hand into Archer’s.  “Always, pinkskin.”

Archer chuckled again, and began leading them to the trail leading down on the other side of the mountain.

XXXXXXXXXX

**Author's Note:**

> Author’s Note: So, I intended to have way more physical stuff going on with these two prompts, and…well…this happened instead. I’m still kind of happy with it though, so I hope you enjoyed!
> 
> As always, never-ending thanks to my beta, LSR. He is my sounding board, my sometimes-source of ideas, and my always-source of “really? You wanna do that?” ideas, haha.
> 
> Lastly, a major shout-out to Tzigany. Without you, I wouldn’t have written this. Your comments were inspiring and reminded me why I liked this pairing so much. I promise I’ll try and bring in Soval next time! I intended to this time; it just didn’t happen.
> 
> So, that’s a wrap, folks! I still have 16 prompts to get through, and I’m bound and determined to not only finish this one, but two other projects I have going. Hope you liked!


End file.
